Addressing Intimate Partner Violence: 
Ethical Dimensions

DO YOU SUSPECT A CLIENT IS STRUGGLING with intimate partner violence (IPV)?

IPV is often a secret and frequently camouflaged when clients seek individual and couples counseling. It’s also tragically ubiquitous. According to the National Coalition against Domestic Violence, IPV affects one in two women, one in four men, and equal or even higher rates of transgender and non-binary individuals. Clinicians working in mental health and addiction treatment settings often notice signs that suggest IPV, but they don’t know how to assess or respond helpfully given the volatility of the situation.

As part of the ethical imperative to support client welfare, all clinicians have an obligation to recognize the signs of IPV, to assess danger, and to respond without making an unsafe situation worse. But addressing IPV can raise dilemmas related to confidentiality, informed consent, self-determination, and client welfare. Without knowledge and skill, there is the hazard of clinicians causing harm.

BY THE END OF THIS DAYLONG WORKSHOP, participants will be able to:

• Identify signs of intimate partner violence when working with clients in individual or couples counseling when it is not the referring problem; 
• Grapple with common misconceptions about IPV that interfere with effective practice; 
• Use clinically sound strategies to screen for IPV and assess danger;
• Articulate the elements of a comprehensive safety plan;
• Analyze ethical dilemmas that emerge when working with IPV including equity considerations, client self-determination, confidentiality, and informed consent; and
• Enhance clinical competencies that support client wellbeing, including modifying treatment interventions to balance treatment goals and enhance safety. 

Six hours of continuing education (ethics) approved through the National Association of Social Workers.  

BIPOC REPARATIONS DISCOUNT: If you identify as a member of BIPOC communities, you are entitled to a 25% discount.

MILITARY DISCOUNT: If you served in the military, either currently or in the past, or you are a military spouse, there is a 25% discount.

GRADUATE STUDENT DISCOUNT: If you are currently in graduate school in a clinical discipline and wish to register, there is a 25% discount.

Contact Wayne Scott for discount codes.